Brigitte Dunne (SMU Athletics)
MESA, Ariz. (Dec. 29, 2018) – Brigitte Dunne took over the lead at the Arizona Silver Belle when she managed to avoid making a single bogey all day at Longbow Golf Club. Dunne, a senior at SMU, made three birdies on the front nine, then closed the back nine with all pars for a 3-under 68.
Dunne, who hails from Camarillo, Calif., reached 4 under for the tournament, which was good enough to give her a one-shot advantage on fellow California native Ashely Shim entering the final round. Dunne won this event in 2016.
Shim gained considerable ground on the leaderboard when she fired a 6-under 65. It was the best round of the day by three shots. Shim went 4 under in her final six holes. She had top-10 finishes this year at the Rolex Girls Junior Championship and the California Women’s Amateur Championship.
Alabama’s Kenzie Wright, the 2015 Silver Belle champion, and Julie Ju, the first-round leader, are tied for third at 1 under. Wright logged a 1-over 72 in the second round and Ju had a 74.
ROUND 1
Julie Ju came out of the gate at the Arizona Silver Belle hot enough to set up her whole day. The Chandler, Ariz., local went 4 under on the front nine at Longbow Golf Club, then threw out nine consecutive pars on the back nine. She leads the tournament at 4-under 67.
Ju, 18, set up a two-shot lead at the long-running women’s amateur event in Arizona. Behind her, Waverly Whiston, Kenzie Wright and Sophie Zhang-Murphy all posted rounds of 2-under 69 to land in a tie for second.
Whiston is a sophomore at Tennessee who hails from San Diego. Wright is a junior at Alabama, and last week finished third at the Dixie Women’s Amateur. She won this event in 2015 with a come-from-behind performance.
Three players are tied for fifth after a 1-under 70 at Longbow. That includes Ellen Secor, the Colorado State player who made up one half of the winning U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball duo last spring. Briana Chacon, a talented junior golfer from Whittier, Calif., and Brigitte Dunne, a standout SMU senior, are also at that number. Chacon was fifth at the Silver Belle in 2017.
Defending champion Yealimi Noh is not in the field.
ABOUT THE
Arizona Silver Belle Championship
Founded in 1971 by Joanne Winter, LPGA, the Joanne Winter Arizona Silver Belle Championship was to encourage competition in golf for young women amateur golfers under the age of 24. Today, it is nationally recognized and included in the major golf rankings, including AmateurGolf.com. This tournament qualifies for AJGA Performance-Based Entry. Entrants must be younger than 24 years old as of December 28. All applicants 14 years and younger will be reviewed as one group and will compete for the Overall Champion title and within the '14 and Under' age division.
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